Join us Thursday, March 24th at 7pm when author Virginia Morrell presents Blue Nile: Ethiopia’s River of Magic and Mystery.
Sacred, mysterious, powerful—the Blue Nile has carved a deep channel through human history. Join writer and National Geographic explorer, Virginia Morell, on a journey from the river’s source in the wild Ethiopian highlands, through volcanic and marbled canyons, to the deserts of Sudan. Morell’s 1999 adventure, with photographer Nevada Wier, was the first to travel in an unbroken journey—by foot and raft--the length of the Blue Nile in Ethiopia. Prior to their trip, more than one explorer had perished in the Blue Nile Gorge, whose hazards range from raging rapids to menacing crocodiles to armed bandits. The women and their team meet patriarchs whose Christianity stretches back to the Roman Empire, and greet villagers who have sometimes traveled for days to catch a glimpse of these strange foreigners and their marvelous boats. It’s an unforgettable journey through time—and among a strong people who’ve resisted the advances of the modern world.

Admission is free with a $5 suggested donation.

Virginia Morell is a Contributing Correspondent for Science, the journal of the American Association of Science, and an Advisor to the National Geographic Society’s Expeditions Council. She has written more than 30 articles for National Geographic, as well as the book Blue Nile for the National Geographic Society’s Adventure Press (2001). Blue Nile was a San Francisco Chronicle’s Best Travel Book of the Year. She is also the author of Ancestral Passions, a biography of the Leakey family of anthropologists. Ancestral Passions (published by Simon & Schuster) was a 1995 New York Times Notable Book of the Year. Morell also co-authored Wildlife Wars (St. Martins Press, 2001) with Richard Leakey, about his efforts to stop the poaching of elephants in Kenya; it was selected as a WashingtonPost Best Book of the Year. She has also written forTheNew York Times Magazine, Discover, Smithsonian, and Outside magazines. She is a regular contributor to Science’s blog ScienceInsider, and the news site ScienceNow. Morell is completing a new book on how animals think.